Business enterprises started giving a lot of importance to the diversity programs after a series of big lawsuits occurred because of discrimination, racism, sexual harassment, etc. It was evident that to address these issues. We need to teach our people the right kind of behavior they should follow in the workplace.
Though most companies are seriously conducting diversity programs for their employees, actual data shows that the impact is not so strong on people and not improving the situation as it should be.
There are several reasons behind this:
- Dos and Don’ts: Normally, the executives, give a series of dos and don’ts in these diversity programs. But are we able to motivate them to change their behavior? NO. The person providing the training is also not free from biases and thus presents the whole program as a compulsion. So ultimately, the effect is not as expected.
- People and Biasness: Do you think the people participating in the program shed their biases? In most of the cases, NO. They might be correctly answering the questionnaire given to them, but the effect of all these last only about 1-2 days, and after that, they are again back to their old mentality.
- Test for Hiring: The managers and HRs in the hiring process are mostly not free from these biases. They might reject you by saying that you have failed the test and hiring a white counterpart who does not give the test in your place. Yes, that has happened to many women and African-American men and women, Asian-American men and women, Hispanic men and women, etc. However, bias ultimately results in the number of employees in even managerial jobs for the categories above.
- Assessing the Performance: The performance rating of assessing the performance is an essential task for the managers, as the promotion, the pay of an employee are very much dependent on this. But, here also the same discrimination and biases towards women and people of other races, cultures, and financial backgrounds. In many cases, the white men are getting more raises than their female counterparts though both have equal potential and work with the same sincerity. So, where is the diversity?
- Addressing the Grievance: Addressing the grievance is one of the most critical tasks for managers or leaders. Most business organizations have a system where the employees can challenge the pay, promotion, and termination decisions. The managers need to take the issues seriously and, if required, change their behavior or others’ behavior. But in many cases, instead of taking proper actions, they try to take the person who complained in confidence and submit false reports to wrap up the situation.
So, having diversity programs is not the solution, but we need to motivate people to change their mindsets and behavior accordingly.